Supermassive - A Physics-based Puzzle Game

[MasterChief3624]

I'm not one of those people that cringes at the term "physics-based". "Match-three" is where I start to cringe haha. So naturally, this game looks pretty darn good.

Was this developed with Quantum Conundrum in mind, given the different states used? They're honestly completely different games, but I was still curious.

Considering picking this one up. One thing that stops me from enjoying puzzle-ish games, though, is the inclusion of enemies. Are there any enemies I'll have to learn to avoid somewhere in the game?

[supermassivegame]

Good question. I'm a gamer myself but for the last nine months I didn't have the time to follow the gamescene. I have heard about Quantum Conundrum but I had no idea what the game was about. So there were no influence that way (QC look a lot like Portal..?).

No worries, there are no enemies in Megamassive. Just you and the physics

[MasterChief3624]

Originally Posted by supermassivegame

Good question. I'm a gamer myself but for the last nine months I didn't have the time to follow the gamescene. I have heard about Quantum Conundrum but I had no idea what the game was about. So there were no influence that way (QC look a lot like Portal..?).

No worries, there are no enemies in Supermassive. Just you and the physics

Ah okay. Just a similar-ish physics concept I guess, haha.

Oh awesome possum! I will definitely try it out then. Thanks for the feedback!

[Connector]

Originally Posted by devensega

Looks like my thing mate, but I will wait for an iPad/universal version.

Yeah, sorry I am out too, never play iphone only games. Good luck.

[MasterChief3624]

Man... Well I wasn't going to play the game tonight, because my eyes are extremely blurry. So truthfully I am typing half-blind right now. But I played the first level, and this game will be extremely difficult to three-star every level, if this is any indication.

I can already tell this will be one of those games that you will need to dedicate a ridiculous amount of time to. So far it seems the levels have different paths to get to the goal, and the time you need to get for the three-star rating (heck even a 2-star) requires that you be perfect. No mistakes. That's the vibe I've gotten so far, now after playing another level during this posting

But it's a very interesting game. I don't think I've ever played a physics game that doesn't require navigation. I'm not sure if the levels later will add in the ability to move left and right, but I like it this way. It's kind of... satisfying, actually. The ball moves on its own, and you utilize the different states using the three buttons on the bottom of the screen. Depending on the terrain, you will need to utilize the states that best fits the situation.

So far it seems the water state is best used on flatlands, the rock is best used on downhill sections, and gaseous should be used for climbing elevation. It's going to take a long time to get used to switching these at the exact right time, but I can tell I'm going to have a fun time even during that interim.

Actually Jet Car Stunts comes to mind, regarding difficulty. Punishingly hard in regards to ranking you, if you don't get your run down perfect. Even when I got what I thought was a perfect run, I still didn't come close to the three-star ranking!

Another game that this reminds me of, but like Jet Car Stunts it is a completely different genre, is Super Meat Boy. The way you have to replay levels over and over to get an A+ rank, utilizing different paths to meet your goal... that's the way the paths work here. You need to be quick, know your path, and practice practice practice.

With the comparison to Jet Car Stunts, I bring my first suggestion: Easy mode. It is my understanding that when Jet Car Stunts first came out, there wasn't a casual mode. It was just one mode, and that mode was 'Really effing hard'. I could be wrong, however. But still, the ratings are declining because people are getting frustrated about not getting three stars? I feel their pain. I think creating an easy level pack would be a kind gesture. And as much as I appreciate a developer sticking to their guns, maybe I can also suggest turning the three-star ranking stipulations down a notch or two?

So back on Jet Car Stunts: They eventually brought out a Casual mode. Less restriction on time, fuel usage, and I believe also the ranking system was toned down a little bit. So the game maintained the obscene difficulty for the hardcores, but had a mode in there for the people that weren't so great at it. Perhaps you could try something like that?

A suggestion for how to implement it:

1. First level is a tutorial on water. Make it whatever terrain a waterdrop works best on. Instruct the player on how to tap the screen and make their object appear, freeze time right before the ball hits the goal, and point the player to the goal, explaining to them the nature of the game.

2. Next level is getting used to the gaseous state. Probably a hill. Explain that the gaseous state is best used on inclines.

3. Same as above, but with the solid state and its respective best terrain.

4. Then the rest of the levels, gradually introduce the player to the concept of using all the states at once. The first mixed level could be water and gas, then water and rock. Then gas and rock. Then all three. Do a couple levels for each of those permutations.

Understand where I'm going with this? I think if you included a Beginners level pack, or even just call it Tutorial Zone or something, more people would gravitate to your game with an open mind. As it stands now it seems you just kind of throw the player in to explore on their own. Perhaps that was the point, and I do like that idea, but the general App Store population might not appreciate it so much.

I actually just noticed there is an Intro button on the first set of levels. I like the storyboarding. Very cute And I understand now the uses of the different objects. I think it's important that the player sees that, so I would personally make it play automatically when someone turns the game on, but maybe with the added information I listed above, then lead them to the beginner level pack.

Regarding the star system: I'm not a stickler for three stars or bust. It is satisfying to finally get a game where I can 3-star everything nigh automatically, but I don't put down a game that is too hard because the triple-star rank is impossible to achieve. I just chalk up another reason why I suck at videogames But on to the point: Perhaps you could keep the three-star stipulations, but make that a shiny gold three-star stipulation instead.

So what I'm saying is maybe make it a 4 star system:

1 star 15 seconds
2 star 10 seconds
3 star 7.5 seconds
Shiny gold star (and I do mean shiny... make it gleam! ) 5 seconds/perfect run

Understand that as well?

So change the three star rank to a shiny three star rank, make the 2 star rank a 3 star, make the 1 star a 2, and make up a relaxing and kind time for a 1 star. Maybe just beating the level nets you one star. Then a very reasonable time for 2 stars, a difficult time for 3 stars, and then the impossible time/perfect run for three shiny stars.

Everything else about the game is solid, though. The art style is nice, and minimalistic, but colorful. The sound is there. Not exceptional, but it also doesn't need to be.

I can understand if the above suggestions jeopardize your starting vision of the game, but I thought I would share the thoughts anyways.

Great game, though!

[supermassivegame]

Thanks MasterChief3624 for a great post!

The difficulty level was given a great deal of thought. And I have noticed people play the game a bit differently than I thought they would. It seems that a lot of players play a level and continue playing that level until they have gotten three stars. I thought that people would play maybe the first world completely and learned a bit more of the handling that way, and then would start from the beginning.

The design choice was to make the levels in a way you can never fail. You can never get stuck and you can always finish the level, your star-rank is just a bit lower. And then when you are finally speeding through a level, you will get a feeling that you really know you stuff

Comparing Megamassive to Super Meat Boy is a great honor. I think that Super Meat Boy is more punishing with its gameplay but I totally understand where you are coming from.

I really liked you ideas and it was nice to hear you enjoyed the game!

EDIT: Oh, I forgot. Please, if you like the game, leave a review on the appStore. I would appreciate it.

[CygnetSeven]

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